JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A JTA board member is calling for members of the agency’s leadership team to resign, saying the board was kept in the dark about the depth of its financial problems.
Former JTA CEO Nat Ford addressed questions about the agency from his new role leading Dallas Area Rapid Transit.
“I’m here in Dallas,” Ford said. “So that is my sole focus.”
Ford continued to face questions about the agency he left behind, along with a looming attorney general investigation and select committee probe.
Ford blamed JTA’s financial collapse on a mix of shrinking revenue and a costly federal deadline.
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He said the Jacksonville Transportation Authority relies on sales tax and local option gas tax dollars to fund the system, and that both began to decline after the pandemic.
“At the same time, part of that perfect storm in terms of our revenues, we started seeing fare revenue reduce,” Ford said. “There was a lack of ridership that we had been used to pre-pandemic.”
On the spending side, Ford pointed to what he called an innovative, federally funded project JTA committed to in 2019, with a 2025 launch date.
“We had to meet that deadline,” Ford said. “Otherwise, we’d have to reimburse the federal government for not launching that system.”
Discussing “decisions we make around contracting and investment in our employees and things of that nature,” Ford said, “And sometimes that’s not fully understandable outside our doors.”
Ford’s account comes days after JTA board member Daniel Vallencourt raised concerns about the agency’s transparency and financial reporting. Vallencourt said in a statement that the board approved a $148.2 million budget this fiscal year while the agency spent $181.1 million. He said financial projections made JTA’s finances look far better than they were.
For example, reports to the board in May showed a $25 million deficit alongside $20 million marked “pending,” making the shortfall look like just $5 million, while JTA had drawn nearly $47 million from its reserves.
“You know, I worked with a great group of professionals at JTA,” Ford said.
Vallencourt is also seeking the resignations of the interim CEO, chief operating officer and senior vice president of public affairs. The board unanimously approved the interim CEO two months ago.
Action News Jax contacted every other JTA board member to ask whether Vallencourt’s assessment matched what they knew and when they knew it. None had responded at the time of the report.
Asked about engaging with Jacksonville City Council amid its ongoing investigation, Ford said:
“There will be limits in terms of my engagement and I will not allow it to get in the way of what we need to accomplish here,” Ford said.
Ford said there is still no set time for him to answer the city’s subpoena.
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